Wednesday, 6 June 2012

Hazrat Fatima (, may Allah be pleased with him) was born 5 years before the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, declared his Prophethood, on the 20th of Jamadius Sani. These were the better days when the Quraish were busy reconstructing the Kabah.

She was born when the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was approximately 45 years of age.

Name and Titles

Her name is Fatima and she is the youngest daughter of the Holy Prophet , peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

She is the Leader of the women of the world, and Leader of the women in the Paradise.

Her titles are Taahira, Zahra and Batool.

She is named
Fatima because Allah will protect her & her followers from the fire
of Hell. She is called Batool because she was distinguished among the
ladies of her age in regards to knowledge, piety and ancestry. She is
Zahra, because she excelled in feminine charms and human excellence.

Childhood

From her
childhood, Hazrat Fatima was very calm, elegant and sensible. Her other
sisters used to take part in games and hobbies, but she would not join
them.
She did not enjoy going out & visiting people unnecessarily and
would keep herself distanced, spending time in the presence of her
mother, Hazrat Khadija.

The Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
would appreciate her simplicity and her disregard of worldly
attachments, and this is another reason as to why she was called Batool.

Being the daughter of the Blessed Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,, she was bestowed with exceptional characteristics and distinctions.

Social Boycott

When Hazrat
Fatima was approximately 12 years old, she faced very difficult
circumstances in which the companions & family of Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, were driven out of their homes by the Kuffar for 3 years.

They were
isolated in a small area some distance from Makkah, called Shabi Abi
Talib. For these 3 years, the supply of food was scarce and the people
faced great hardships. The condition of the children was worse, and at
times people were left with no choice but to eat leaves to satisfy their
hunger.

Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,’s
friends and family, despite their unspeakable suffering, showed no
signs of giving up and eventually the boycott came to an end and they
were allowed to return home.

This difficult trial had an effect on the health on Hazrat Fatima which persisted throughout her life.

Death of Hazrat Khadija

The pain and problems in Hazrat Fatima’s life did not come to an end even after the episode of social boycott.

The moment
came when her mother, Hazrat Khadija, passed away and thus Hazrat Fatima
was deprived of a loving & kind hearted mother.

When the
Kuffar (non-Muslims) of Makkah became more aggressive in their enmity,
they inflicted more suffering on the Muslims. Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,, at the command of Allah swt, migrated from Makkah to Madinah Sharif.

A few days after reaching Madinah Sharif, Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
sent his slaves, Hazrat Abu Raafi & Hazrat Zaid bin Haritha to
bring his family members, which of course, included Hazrat Fatima.

Her Marriage

When the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, migrated to Madinah, Hazrat Fatima was unmarried. There were a number of proposals offered for her.

Firstly, Hazrat Abu Bakr requested for her hand to which Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, remained silent. Then Hazrat Umar expressed his willingness and in reply, Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said, ‘It will be according to Allah’s Command.’ Finally, Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, betrothed Hazrat Fatima to Hazrat Ali.

On the day of the marriage, Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
ordered Hazrat Anas to call Hazrat Abu Bakr, Hazrat Umar, Hazrat Usman,
Hazrat Abdul Rahman bin Auf, the Muhajireen & the Ansar. Then he
himself recited the wedding sermon with a beautiful smile on his Blessed
Face.

He said to Hazrat Ali, “I am marrying you to Fatima for 400 Mithqaal silver jointure. Do you agree?”

Hazrat Ali then replied, “Yes, of course.”

At the time, Hazrat Fatima was almost 19 years old and Hazrat Ali was almost 21 years old.

Dowry

The dowry Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, gave to his beloved daughter is as follows:

·a couch or bed

·a leather pillow stuffed with date bark

·a waterskin

·bedding

·two pots

·one grind stone

·two bed sheets

·one prayer mat

Devoted daughter

In the battle of Uhud, Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
sustained serious injuries on his blessed head and cheek but he was
protected by Allah, through the unrivalled devotion of his Companions,
one of whom shielded the Holy Prophet from the arrows of the enemy using
his bare hands.

In this state of confusion, someone shouted that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
had been killed. When this news reached Madinah, Hazrat Fatima along
with some other ladies reached the battlefield of Uhud, despite the
horrible scenes. She felt solace on seeing the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, alive and then bathed the wounds of her father repeatedly, but the blood did not stop flowing particularly from the forehead.
She, ultimately, burnt a palm-mat and put its ashes into the wound which stopped the flow of blood.

Once, Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was performing Namaz in the Kabah. The accursed Uqba bin Abi Moit put the tripe of a camel on the back of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
while he was in Sajda (prostration). Someone told Hazrat Fatima about
this evil action of the non-Muslim and she became restless. She rushed
towards the Kabah and removed the tripe from Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,’s back, while the Kuffar were laughing and clapping.
She looked at them and said “You will be punished for this ill gesture by the Lord of Lords.”
Her words proved true as after some years in the battle of Badr, all those wicked people met their ends in a humiliating way.

Her Generosity

Hazrat Ibne
Abbas reports that once Hazrat Ali irrigated a garden throughout the
night and he got some barley as wages. From that barley, Hazrat Fatima
ground it and prepared their meal. When they intended to eat, a needy
person knocked at the door and said, "I am hungry." Hazrat Fatima gave
all the food to that poor person and prepared their meal again from more
barley. She had hardly finished preparing it, when an orphan appealed
to them for help and all the food was donated to him too. She then began
to ground the remaining barley and prepare the food again, when a
polytheist captive asked for food in the way of Allah. Again, Hazrat
Fatima donated all the food to him and all the family members remained
hungry.

Allah swt was so much pleased at this noble gesture that he revealed this verse in favour of this holy family:

“And they feed, for the love of Him, the poor, the orphan and the prisoner.” (Holy Qur’an - Al-Dahr, 29:8)

Once, an old man from the Banu Sulaim tribe embraced Islam. Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
asked him, “Do you have any fortune?”. He submitted, “By Allah. I am
the poorest one among the three thousand people of Banu Sulaim.”
Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, glanced at
his Companions and said, “Who will help this poor person?" Hazrat Saad
bin Ubadah stood up and said, “O Messenger of Allah! I have a dromedary
(camel) which I give him.

Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said, “Who is there among you to cover his head?" Hazrat Ali stood and put his turban on the head of that bedouin.

Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
then asked, “Who will arrange food for him?” Hazrat Salman Farsi took
the bedouin along with him and went to arrange food for him. He asked
from some people but received nothing from them.

At last, he
knocked at the door of Sayyidah Fatima's house. ”Who is it?” she
inquired. Hazrat Salman Farsi narrated to her the whole story and
submitted, “O daughter of the true Messenger of Allah! Arrange some food
for this poor man, please.”
Tears filled her blessed eyes, and Hazrat Fatima replied, “O Salman, by
Allah! We have been starving for the last three days, and both children
have slept hungry but I will not let you go empty handed. Take my shawl
to Shamoon, the Jew and ask him to keep the shawl of Fatima the daughter
of Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and give something to this poor man.”

Hazrat
Salman took that bedouin along with him to the house of that Jew and
told him the entire story. Startled by this news, he cried out “O
Salman! By God, these are the people about whom the Torah has informed
us about. Be my witness, I believe in the father of Fatima!”

He then gave some grain to Hazrat Salman for the poor man, and also returned the shawl to Sayyidah Fatima.

Resemblance between Father & Daughter

Sayyidah
Fatima took after her father from head to toe. She resembled him in
looks, manners, walk, articulation and character. In other words. she
was a reflection of her father.

Hazrat Aisha says, “I did not see anyone who resembled the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,, in all manners, more perfectly than Fatima, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah.”

On another occasion, Hazrat Aisha narrates, “Then came Fatima whose gait resembles that of the Messenger of Allah." (Muslim)

Beloved Daughter of the Holy Prophet

Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, loved Hazrat Fatima to a great extent. It was the routine of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, that whenever he returned from a journey, after performing prayer in the Masjid, he went straight to Hazrat Fatima’s house.
In short, the love of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, for his cherished daughter is to be admired.

Hazrat Sayyidah Aisha reports, "Whenever she visited the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,, he stood up for her, kissed her and seated her on his place." (Tirmidhi)

The following event also throws light on the extreme love of the Holy Prophet for his most favourite daughter Hazrat Fatima.
Once, Hazrat Ali intended to marry the daughter of Abu Jahal. When
Hazrat Fatima became aware of this fact, she went straight to the Holy
Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and informed him of the current circumstances. The Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, mounted his pulpit and delivered the following sermon whose each & every word bears the witness that Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
loved his daughter to the core of his blessed heart, “Banu Hashim have
sought my consent to marry their daughter to Ali bin Abi Talib. I do not
give the consent, I do not give the consent, I do not give the consent.
Yes, if Ali wishes, he should first give divorce to my daughter and
then marry their daughter. Because my daughter is part of my body. The
thing which disturbs her, disturbs me and the thing which distresses,
her distresses me.” (Muslim)

Hazrat Fatima’s Love for Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

The
intensity of Hazrat Fatima’s love for her Beloved Father can be
perceived in the fact that she did not smile at all after his passing
away. (Usdul Ghaba Verse 5 page 634)

It is also reported by Sayyidah Aisha that while Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
was on his death bed, he whispered to Hazrat Fatima twice. The first
time, she wept and the second time, she smiled. On enquiry, she replied:
“He informed me that he was leaving this world due to this illness, so I
began to weep. Then he informed me that I would be the first in his
family to meet him, at this I smiled.” (Tirmidhi)

Dear readers! This tradition, without any exaggeration testifies to the belief that the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, knows his own end and even the time of the departure of his followers too.

Secondly, Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
made Hazrat Fatima aware of her death being close, but instead of being
worried & tense, she smiled because this was to be the reunion of
the best father and the best daughter.

The Best Housewife

As Hazrat Fatima was a reflection of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,,
she always preferred to do the household chores herself. She would work
to the extent that her blessed hands became blistered due to using a
grinding stone and her clothes would become dusty from sweeping the
floor.

Hazrat Ali
reported that, one day Hazrat Fatima went to her father's house to ask
for a slave or a servant who would perform some of the chores as she had
grown corns on her hands due to the strenuous work. At this time,
Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, was not at home. She then informed Hazrat Aisha of her condition and returned home.

At night, Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
went to her house and said, 'Should I not tell you a thing which is
better for you than a slave? When you go to bed, recite 33 times
Subhanallah (Glory to Allah), 33 times Alhamdulillah (All praise to
Allah), and 34 times Allahu Akbar (Allah is the Greatest). This will be
better for you than a servant.”
(Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi)

Leader of the Women of the Worlds

Once Sayyidah Fatima fell ill. Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, asked about her health and she replied that she was not well and there was no food at home to eat.
Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said "My daughter! Are you not pleased over the fact that you are the Leader of the women of the worlds?"
Hazrat Fatima replied, “Father, then where stands Sayyidah Maryam?"
Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, replied,
“She was the Leader of the women of the worlds of her time, while you
are the Leader of the women of the worlds of your era. And your husband
is Leader in this world as well as in the Hereafter."

Wrath of Hazrat Fatima is the Wrath of Allah swt

Hazrat Ali reports that Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
said to Hazrat Fatima, “If you become furious, Allah swt also becomes
wrathful. And if you are pleased, Allah swt also becomes pleased.”
(Usdul Ghaba, verse 5)

Piety & Purification

Allah swt sent down a verse expressing the piety & pureness of all the members of Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,’s family:

“Allah
only desires, O the members of the Prophet’s house! That He may remove
from you every impurity and purify you well having cleansed you
thoroughly.”(Surah al-Ahzab 33:33)

Faith in Allah

One day Hazrat Usman Ghani invited Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, to a feast at his house. Accepting the invitation, Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, accompanied by his Companions, proceeded towards Hazrat Usman's residence.

As the Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, started to walk, Hazrat Usman began to count the steps of the Holy Prophet , peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, asked, 'Why are you counting my steps?"
Hazrat Usman replied, “Ya Rasulallah, I will set one slave free for each of your steps to my house.”
Afterward, Hazrat Usman materialized this wish when Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,’s visit to his house was over .

Hadrat Ali then returned home looking troubled.
Hazrat Fatima asked, “Why are you so worried?” In reply, told her the
complete story. Hazrat Fatima then said to him, “Go, and invite
Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, along with his Companions.”

In short, the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
proceeded with his Companions towards Hazrat Ali’s residence.
Meanwhile, Hazrat Fatima placed a pot on the stove and invoked her Lord,
“Ya Allah! This servant of Yours has invited Your Beloved Prophet and
his Companions. Now let me not feel ashamed in front of them."

Allah swt
then fulfilled her invocation, by filling the pot with Heavenly food.
When all the guests were eating, the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, informed them that Allah swt had sent this food from Heaven. Hearing this, a surge of happiness ran through all the guests.

Hazrat
Fatima, the Queen of the Universe, again invoked Allah in the state of
Sajda (prostration), “O Allah! Usman Ghani had freed one slave for every
step taken by Your Prophet to his home. Please free one sinner in the
Holy Prophet's Ummah from the Hell-Fire, for the sake of every step he
has taken to my house.”

When Hazrat Fatima finished her supplication, Hazrat Jibrail appeared infront of Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
and said, “Allah swt has sent this glad tiding to you that He, granting
the invocation of your beloved daughter, has freed one thousand
wrong-doers from the fire for every step you took towards her house.”
(Jamiul Mo’jizaat)

Blessed Progeny

Hazrat
Fatima gave birth to two sons - Hazrat Imam Hassan and Hazrat Imam
Hussain and two daughters, Hazrat Sayyidah Umme Kulthum and Sayyidah
Zainab.
Some historians have added the names of Hazrat Imam Mohsin and Sayyidah
Ruqayya to the progeny of Hazrat Fatima, while others have omitted them.
Those who have included their names also agree that they had died in
their prime age. Therefore, there is not much information recorded about
them.

It is also one of the excellences of Hazrat Fatima that her progeny resumed the lineage of descendence of the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and this will remain upto the Last Day.

Rasulallah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

“All the
offspring of Adam (A.S.) are attributed to their paternal relatives,
except the progeny of Fatima that I am their father and their paternal
link.”

Hazrat Fatima Leaves this World

When the
time of Sayyidah Fatima's death approached, she told Hazrat Asma, the
daughter of Omais, that she did not like the traditional way in which
the funeral of a woman would be carried to the grave (a sheet was used
to cover the dead through which the body was visible). Hazrat Asma told
her that in Habsha (Ethopia), she had seen a different custom in which
they would place the branches of trees on the bed and then spread the
sheet over them (so that the body shape was also concealed).
Hazrat Fatima approved of this custom and advised that after her death, she and Hazrat Ali (*please see note below) should bathe her body, and they should not seek assistance of any third person.

Hence, Hazrat Fatima (, may Allah be pleased with him) was the first
woman in Islam whose shroud was wrapped in the manner mentioned above.

She left this world on 3rd Ramadan 11 AH, at the age of thirty.
Hazrat Ali led her funeral prayer and she, according to her wish, was buried at night in Jannatul Baqi (Usdul Ghaba).

Hazrat
Fatima’s piety & modesty was such, that even at the time of death
she ensured that none should see her dead body wrapped in the shroud. It
is Hazrat Sayyidah Fatima who will enjoy such a status on the Day of
Resurrection, that a herald will announce "O people! Lower your gaze so
that Fatima, the daughter of Muhammad, may pass through here.” (Usdul
Ghaba. V 5, P524)

Note *
No man can touch the dead body of his wife, as once she has passed away
the marriage becomes void. This is also a special attribute of Hazrat
Fatima (, may Allah be pleased with him), that her death did not nullify
their marriage.
Hence, Hazrat Ali remained her husband even after her death.